Lemon Orzo Pasta Salad

Lemon Orzo Pasta Salad. Celebrate warmer weather with this fresh orzo salad filled with summer vegetables and a fresh and light lemon herb vinaigrette dressing.

Lemon Orzo Pasta Salad

Hi friends, the weather is finally warming up here and it has me in the mood for fresh salad! Today I’m sharing my favorite new salad recipe it combines my love of Orso, with my favorite spring vegetables and a beautiful light lemon vinaigrette dressing. It’s the perfect salad for spring I hope you love it!

9 Spring Salad Recipes

I am also joining some of my creative friends today who are also sharing their favorite spring salads! Be sure to click on each one and pin it so you can find them easily to make this spring and summer. I promise you are going to love these salad recipes!

Orzo Salad

Orso is easily my favorite type of pasta. I love the shape and I think orzo pasta is the perfect pasta for salad. I’ve made quite a few salad recipes using orzo like my Mediterranean orzo salad, my veggie orzo salad, and my Italian orzo salad. This orzo salad recipe is a little bit different because I added my favorite spring vegetables but also the fresh taste of lemon in the salad and in the dressing. The zesty fresh lemon flavor tastes so good with spring baby peas, delicate artichokes and crisp marinated artichoke hearts. You are going to love this salad!

Trader Joe’s lemon basil pasta salad dupe

Trader Joe’s is my favorite place to grab a ready-made salad. There’s so many different salads that I love. One of my favorites is Trader Joe’s lemon basil pasta salad. I wanted to create the same taste as a salad in a larger quantity and instead of using bow tie pasta I wanted to use orzo because I love the size of the Orso and I think it’s perfect to use in a pasta salad recipe. This salad also makes enough for eight people so it’s a really great way to create a light and beautiful side dish or even main dish for pennies on the dollar compared to buying it at the store.

What ingredients are needed to create an orzo pasta salad?

• Orzo Pasta Of course you can use any variety of pasta to create the salad. Some other pasta shapes that would work great in the salad include bow tie pasta, penne pasta, angel hair pasta, Etc.
• Spring Vegetables – you can use any vegetables that your family loves. I wanted to use some vegetables that are fresh in the springtime. I chose fresh asparagus tips, fresh baby peas and artichoke heart, which pair really well with fresh lemons.
• Lemon Herb Vinaigrette Dressing – there’s something about fresh lemons that feels so spring like to me. I created very simple lemon vinaigrette dressing with lemon juice, Italian herbs, white wine vinegar and lemon flavored olive oil. Of course if you don’t have lemon flavored olive oil you can use regular olive oil or even avocado oil for this recipe.
• Lemons – you can use store-bought lemon juice, but I emphatically recommend using fresh lemons. I also love greeting lemon rind and adding that to the vinaigrette to give it even more lemon flavor.

How to make this lemon orzo salad

1. Cook the orzo pasta. Read on the pasta package how long it is recommended to cook the pasta to an al dente firmness. You don’t want to cook the orzo too little or it is crunchy or too long and it becomes mushy. Most Orso pastas recommend to cook the pasta at 9 minutes. When the pasta is done, take the pasta and transfer it into a strainer and rinse it under cold water until the pasta is completely cool. This is very important because if the pasta is not completely cooled down it will continue to cook and it could become mushy. Then transfer the pasta to your serving Bowl.
2. Prepare your spring vegetables. While the pasta is cooking prepare your vegetables. Cook the asparagus tips and boiling water for 2 minutes and then transfer them to a bowl of ice water immediately. This will create a bright green asparagus tip that is still crunchy. Do the same thing with your peas. Dice up the onion and small pieces. Quarter the marinated artichokes.
3. Add vegetables to your serving Bowl.
4. Make the lemon herb vinaigrette dressing. Lemon olive oil, herbs, white wine vinegar, salt in a small bowl. Whisk the dressing to incorporate all the ingredients.
5. Toss the salad and serve. Pour the dressing over the pasta and vegetables and toss to incorporate the dressing evenly throughout the pasta salad.
6. Squeeze one lemon juice over the salad. To incorporate even more lemon flavor, I cut a lemon and half, took the seeds out and squeeze the lemon juice over the salad.
7. Sprinkle cheese over the salad. I added some finely grated Romano cheese and dress the salad with the cheese. I think the Romano cheese flavor and the lemon flavor in the salad make a beautiful flavor combination which really works together.

Lemon Orzo Pasta Printable Recipe

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Lemon Orzo Pasta Recipe

Lemon Orzo Pasta Salad. Celebrate warmer weather with this fresh orzo salad filled with summer vegetables and a fresh and light lemon herb vinaigrette dressing.

Course Salad

Cuisine Italian

Keyword artichoke salad, asparagus salad, italian salad, orzo pasta salad, pasta salad, picnic salad, potluck salad, side salad, spring salad, summer salad

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 9 minutes

Servings 8

Calories 440 kcal

Ingredients

• 16 ounces orzo pasta
• 1 bunch fresh asparagus tips
• 1 can marinated artichoke hearts, quartered
• 1 package fresh peas
• 1/2 me4dium red or white onion, diced
• 2 small jalapenos, seeded and diced
• 10-12 basil leaves, shredded
• 1 cup finely shredded romano cheese

Lemon Herb Vinaigrette Dressing

• 3/4 cup olive oil or lemon-flavored olive oil
• 1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 2 large garlic cloves, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 1/2 lemon rind grated zest
• 3 teaspoons white wine vinegar

Instructions

1. Cook the orzo pasta. Read on the pasta package how long it is recommended to cook the pasta to an al dente firmness. You don't want to cook the orzo too little or it is crunchy or too long and it becomes mushy. Most Orso pastas recommend to cook the pasta at 9 minutes. When the pasta is done, take the pasta and transfer it into a strainer and rinse it under cold water until the pasta is completely cool. This is very important because if the pasta is not completely cooled down it will continue to cook and it could become mushy. Then transfer the pasta to your serving Bowl.

2. Prepare your spring vegetables. While the pasta is cooking prepare your vegetables. Cook the asparagus tips and boiling water for 2 minutes and then transfer them to a bowl of ice water immediately. This will create a bright green asparagus tip that is still crunchy. Do the same thing with your peas. Add all veggies to you serving bowl. Add basil leaves.

3. Dice up the onion and small pieces. Quarter the marinated artichokes.Add vegetables to your serving Bowl. Make the lemon herb vinaigrette dressing. Lemon olive oil, herbs, white wine vinegar, salt in a small bowl. Whisk the dressing to incorporate all the ingredients.

4. Make Vinaigrette. Mix all vinaigrette ingredients and whisk together to combine.

5. Toss the salad and serve. Pour the dressing over the pasta and vegetables and toss to incorporate the dressing evenly throughout the pasta salad.Squeeze one lemon juice over the salad. To incorporate even more lemon flavor, I cut a lemon and half, took the seeds out and squeeze the lemon juice over the salad.

6. Sprinkle cheese over the salad. I added some finely grated Romano cheese and dress the salad with the cheese. I think the Romano cheese flavor and the lemon flavor in the salad make a beautiful flavor combination which really works together.

Other ingredients that would work well with lemon orzo pasta salad

You can make the salad with the ingredients that I used, or choose from these ideas and create a lemon orzo pasta salad with ingredients that you and your family love the most.

• Meat – this salad is wonderful as a vegetarian option or a side dish. But if you want to create a version for main course with meat, here are some ideas that would work really well with this pasta salad. Steak strips, diced cooked chicken, cooked shrimp, cute ham or even fish would taste delicious such as salmon.
• Vegetables – roasted bell peppers, spinach or butter lettuce, carrots, cherry tomatoes, olives, Capers, or cucumbers.
• Herbs – I used basil and fresh oregano in the salad but other herbs that would taste delicious include Rosemary, thyme and parsley.
• Cheese – I used to Romano cheese, but some other ideas for cheese would be grated Parmesan, feta or even asiago cheese.

How long will lemon orzo salad last?

The thing that I love about orzo salad is how long it lasts. I create a large batch of lemon orzo pasta salad an as long as I keep it refrigerated in an airtight container, the salad last beautifully in the fridge for up to 5 days. It’s a great dish to create as a meal prep and eat throughout the week. I often create the salad and eat it for lunch throughout the week! The only suggestion I would have if you want to create the salad as meal prep and eat it throughout the week, is not to toss it with fresh lettuce as a lettuce could wilt throughout the week.

Nine fresh and delicious spring salad recipes

Blogger’s Best Spring Salad Recipes

1. Spring Salad Recipe with Spice-Rubbed Salmon | My 100 Year Old Home
2. Mason Jar Greek Salad | Modern Glam
3. Cold Sweet Potato Salad Recipe | Happy Happy Nester
4. Easy Chicken Salad Recipe | My Sweet Savannah
5. Lemon Orzo Pasta Salad | Tatertots and Jello
6. Fresh Spring Luncheon Salad | Make Mine a Spritzer
7. Spring Tortellini Salad | Twelve on Main
8. Simple French Carrot Salad | Most Lovely Things
9. Spring Strawberry Salad | Finding Lovely

More fresh spring and summer salad recipes to make

Mediterranean orzo salad

I am addicted to orzo pasta. Maybe it’s the shape or the texture?? I have an Orzo Artichoke Pasta Salad that I make all the time and I can’t get enough of it!

Grilled corn salad with Tangy lime vinaigrette

Grilled Corn Salad with Tangy Lime Vinaigrette. Looking for the perfect salad to make this summer? This one takes fresh corn and peppers and grills them to bring out the most flavor, mixes in more fresh veggies and tops it with a refreshing citrus lime vinaigrette dressing.

Pin this recipe to make later

If you try this lemon or so salad recipe, I love for you to tag me on Instagram, so I can share your salads! I love seeing your pictures. Let me know in the comments which salad do you want to try first!

Have a delicious day!

XOXO